Overview of the academic plan
Type of school
The proposed school will be a new educational institution.
Name and address
Dubai New Ethos School is an English National Curriculum School located in Nad Al Sheba.
Proposed year and month of opening
September of 2018
Proposed curriculum
The school will use the National Curriculum of England with Early Years Foundation Stage (FS1 and FS2), the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE)/ the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) (10-11), and A-Level the Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) National Diploma (12-13).
Gender and Grade/Year groups
The school will cater to mixed groups and will try to achieve 50/50 ratio of boys to girls. Table 1 shows grade/year groups of the school.
Table 1. Grade/Year Groups of the School.
Instruction time
Table 2 shows instruction time in the school.
Table 2. Instruction Time.
Proposed school premises
The school will be located on one level and accommodate 1000 K1-12 students and 200 KG students. Dubai New Ethos School will have 65 classrooms, 7 offices, 3 rooms for the use of staff, and 10 science laboratories. The size of classrooms will allow each student in the school to have 1.5 m2 of space.
The institution’s library will provide students with frequent access to a wide range of educational materials during school hours. The library will be managed by a teacher-librarian. All classrooms of Dubai New Ethos School will be connected to modern information and communication technology infrastructure, which will help to attain outstanding levels of educational achievement. The school will have twelve specialized science laboratories (physics, chemistry, and biology), three laboratory preparation rooms, two multi-purpose auditoriums, five art rooms, four performing art rooms, and two special needs bases. All facilities will be designed to facilitate the mobility of physically disabled students.
Dubai New Ethos School will have 48 toilets and washrooms, the floors and walls of which will be covered with ceramic tiles, thereby allowing for effective disinfection (Government of Dubai, 2013). The rooms will feature hand sanitizers and hygiene education materials. The school will also have two prayer rooms for boys and girls separately. The rooms will have ablution areas.
In order to ameliorate the harmful effects of sedentarism in the educational institution, all classrooms will accommodate physical activity breaks (Institute of Medicine, 2013). Figure 1 shows classroom layout in Dubai New Ethos School.
The school will offer its students three fully-equipped gymnasiums, and three fully-equipped fitness rooms. The indoor areas of the gymnasiums will have separate locker rooms as well as shower and toilet facilities for each sex (Mbaka, Elias, & Muthaa, 2012). The flooring of the premises will be covered with proper cushioning, which is necessary to ensure safe participation of all students. Gross building area of the school will be 1, 400 m2.
It will be composed of the following areas: halls, dining, and PE (385 m2), learning resources (135 m2), staff and administration (110 m2), storage (160 m2), float (200 m2), and non-net area (410 m2). Total site area of the institution will be 10, 400 m2. It will include soft outdoor PE (6,000 m2), hard outdoor PE (500 m2), soft informal and social area (700 m2), hard informal and social area (300 m2), float (900), and non-net area (2, 000 m2). Float areas will be used to change parameters of other areas (Department for Education, 2014).
KG/FS learning classrooms will have large meeting areas in the center, which will provide young students with a shared learning experience. The areas will be equipped with flipchart stands, big book stands, individual carpet mats, and a flannel story board. The classrooms will also have miscellaneous areas for reading, listening, writing, numeracy, science, technology, art, and dramatic play, which will be located around its perimeters.
Proposed language(s) of instruction
Arabic has been chosen for the delivery of the curriculum. English will be an additional language of instruction.
Admissions policy
The school will accept students of all ethnic backgrounds, abilities, and races. Staff children and siblings will be prioritized during the admission process; however, they will be subject to the school’s admission policy. Students applying for KG1 and KG2 will participate in an informal interview during which age appropriateness, bathroom independence, and ability to separate from parents will be assessed (International Community School, n.d.). Junior students’ mathematics, Arabic, and English skills will be tested during the admission process in order to better understand areas of strength and development (International Community School, n.d.).
Caregivers of children with special education needs will have to notify the school about such needs in order to help teachers to make “reasonable adjustments that may enable students to continue successfully their education” (International Community School, n.d., p. 2). The applications will be reviewed by the school’s principal and SEND education teachers in order to determine whether the institution is capable of accommodating the needs of the children.
Admission assessments will start on February 1. Assessment procedures will be completed within 4 working days after a student’s assessment. All caregivers will be required to provide the following documents: birth certificate (photocopy), passport, ID card, immunization records, 4 photographs of a child. If a year group reaches its capacity, a child can be placed on a waiting list. All applicants participating in the assessment process will have to pay registration fees (AED 120) as per Dubai New Ethos School’s policy. Parents will be provided with comprehensive information regarding tuition and other fees during the assessment.
Management of the school
The company will make a partnership deal with Innoventures Education. The company is a leading School Improvement Partner in Dubai that will “lead and manage school improvement services and deliver the school improvement strategy ensuring that quality and standards continue to improve” (ISS, 2017, p. 10). Innoventures Education will provide expert advice necessary to improve educational outcomes of the institution.
Provision for Emirati students
Attracting, admitting and retaining Emirati students
The school will identify and cater to caregivers’ preferences for education in order to attract and retain more students. In addition, the institution will promote its services at school fairs (Prevot, 2015). The fairs will be conducted during re-enrollment season (February-March), which will help to use recruitment recourses more efficiently.
Using student achievement data
The data will be regularly collected and interpreted in order to modify instructions. All students of Dubai New Ethos School will be taught how to examine their achievement data and compare it with their learning goals. All learners will be provided regular, specific, and constructive feedback (Mbaka et al., 2012). The management of the institution will establish and clearly articulate requirements and responsibilities related to school-wide data use. A variety of stakeholders will be involved in the development of a data-driven culture in Dubai New Ethos School.
Supporting Emirati students’ educational success and achievement
The school will create and nurture a safe and supportive educational environment in order to support Emirati students’ motivation to achieve (Sulkowski & Lazarus, 2016). High expectations from educators, satisfaction of learners’ psychological needs, cultural awareness, social bonding and community building will become permanent staples of the school’s pedagogical approach.
Ensuring that Emirati students know their potential and feel supported to set goals and take action to enjoy success
The school’s Child Development Project (CDP) will help students to strengthen their autonomy and self-direction which are the main prerequisites of academic success (Schaps, n.d.). The program revolves around family involvement activities that are designed to improve academic motivation.
Providing a teaching and learning environment that is relevant, engaging, rewarding and positive
The Innovative Learning Environments (ILE) project will be conducted in the school in order to address organizational and individual issues associated with the creation of engaging learning environment (OECD, 2012). The project will help to nurture strong social bonds; therefore, it will contain cooperation and communication activities.
Ensuring that Emirati students gain the skills, knowledge and qualifications they need to achieve success in the United Arab Emirates and the wider world
In order to prepare the students for successful functioning in the modern economy, the school will put emphasis on the development of critical thinking, which is a basis for analytic reasoning (Carroll & McCulloch, 2014). The school will also help its students to attain the following cross-disciplinary skills associated with success in the 21st century: creativity, research, oral and written communication, ICT literacy, global awareness, health and wellness literacy, planning, and leadership.
Ministry of Education priorities
Arabic language
Philosophy
Dubai New Ethos School believes that the development of Arabic is deeply empowering and promotes cultural identity native speakers. The school will strive to introduce non-native Arabic speaker (ASL) to the beauty of the classical language via a well-adjusted language curriculum.
Leadership
Language development should be a concerted effort; therefore, the school will recruit a team of experts with extensive experience in teaching Arabic. The language leaders will have university degrees and will be accredited by Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) in Dubai. In order to strengthen professional skills of the team, its members will regularly participate in open language conferences. Furthermore, the school’s qualifications developer will be responsible for monitoring and managing staff’s performance by drawing on international expertise.
Curriculum
One of the most important aims of the curriculum development is to support each child in learning the language of the Qur’an. To this end the school will rely on a curriculum designed by the Ministry of Education (MOE), which will help to provide the students with a balanced language learning environment. The curriculum will incorporate Islamic and social studies, thereby equipping young learners a solid understanding of Islamic culture and its history.
Assessment
The MOE’s decree no. 547 will be used to assess language skills of the school’s students (Repton, 2015). All learners will be assessed in a wide range of situations twice each term, which will help to appropriately group students and make sure that they reach their individual learning objectives.
Resources
Qualified and experienced teaching talent will be attracted with the help of comprehensive, online recruitment campaign. The school has enough funds to purchase up-to-date materials for instruction.
Governance
The school’s management is committed to following the MOE’s statutory requirements with respect to staffing levels, educational resources, and curriculum among others.
The UAE National Agenda
The engagement of Innoventures Education professionals will assist the school in meeting requirements of the National Agenda Parameter in the first academic year 2018-2019 as well as all following years (ISS, 2017).
Provision for inclusion
The school’s Every Child Matters policy has been put in place to ensure that every student has equal opportunity to realize their potential. Students with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) will be divided into four broad categories: communication and interaction, cognition and learning, social difficulties, and sensory/physical needs (Lendrum, Barlow, & Humphrey, 2013).
The institution’s Special Educational Needs Coordinator and Inclusion manager will be responsible for identifying children with SEND at different stages of their education. The school’s Deputy Head Teacher for Inclusion will identify high achievers and gifted students and set priorities for their development. Dubai New Ethos School will regularly gather information on academic achievement and personal/social/emotional development of students with SEND, higher achievers, and gifted students in order to modify its curriculum, thereby closing an attainment gap. The school recognizes the role of parents in helping students to achieve their full potential; therefore, caregivers will be encouraged to actively participate in the decision-making process.
Innovation
The school’s management will nurture a culture of innovation by inspiring its staff to move beyond compliance-driven relationship. To this end, leadership of the institution will train staff members to think like leaders and entrepreneurs, which will help them to channel their energy into the creation of new systems within the organization. The school’s infrastructure will be modified to mitigate the impact of the following barriers to innovation: weak incentives to change, micro-management, regulation, and standardization (Goetsch & Davis, 2015).
To create an innovative environment within the school, the organization will attract people who are not afraid of taking risks and understand rewards associated with creative thinking. The staff members will be provided with a high degree of freedom over means to their ends, which will allow them to experiment with curriculum without viewing innovation as redundant. Moreover, teachers will be provided with both fiscal and temporal resources to develop their skills and find new educational strategies.
Vision, mission, rationale and quality assurance
School vision
Dubai New Ethos School’s approach to education is founded on its vision to support young learners in becoming confident lifelong achievers who are ready to embrace opportunities of the modern world. The school’s curriculum is aligned with UAE National Agenda and inspires all students to become enthusiastic and fulfilled members of the global community.
School mission
The school strives to deliver education that reflects Islamic values while emphasizing on global mindedness and innovation. The school nurtures students’ ability to think critically and helps them to become responsible citizens of tomorrow.
Rationale for the proposal
According to a population bulletin issued by the government of Dubai, more than 4, 000 people lived in four sub-communities of Nad Al Sheba in 2015 (Dubai Statistics Center, 2015). With an average population growth of 2.47 percent, it is expected that Kings’ School Nad Al Sheba will not be capable of accommodating all children of the community (Index Mundi, 2017). Therefore, the growth in the district’s population is an opportunity to be explored. The proposal is aligned with the educational provision of Dubai because it will help to achieve the growth of the private sector in primary and secondary schooling.
Quality assurance
The school’s approach to quality assurance revolves around the self-evaluation paradigm. Figure 2 shows Dubai New Ethos School’s self-evaluation cycle.
The analysis of internal and external data is based on the guidelines developed by Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau. For the purposes of the assessment of the school’s progress, the following sources of information will be used: examination data, teachers tracking systems, lesson observations, ongoing assessment data, and diagnostic test results among others (KHDA, 2012). The school will be accredited by the New England Association of School and Colleges (NEASC) during the fourth quarter of 2017.
Curriculum
Introductory statement
The school’s innovative and balanced curriculum will not only contribute to the development of engaged learners but also introduce them to Islamic values through an Islamic Studies program. The syllabus is based on the English National Curriculum that is organized in four key stages (Torrance, 2017). Throughout these stages, the young learners will be introduced to many subjects that will contribute to their personal and social development.
Statutory requirements
In line with the school’s vision, all students after the foundation stage will be introduced to rigorous standards of Islamic education, Arabic as a first language, and Arabic as an additional language. Students willing to pursue higher education in an Arab country will be offered addition lessons in these subjects during years 12 and 13 of senior school.
Extra-curricular provision
The school will provide its students a wide spectrum of extra-curricular activities such as art lessons. These activities will accommodate all age groups and promote children’s physical and intellectual development. Table 3 shows extracurricular activities that will be available for all students.
Table 3. Extra-curricular Provision in Dubai New Ethos School
Provision for students whom the language of instruction is an additional language
Non-Arabic speakers will be supported through a school-wide curriculum modification program and student engagement. The school’s staff members have extensive experience in the provision of pedagogical training for non-native students and possess excellent extra cultural skills. Parents of such students will be informed of additional costs of training on an individual basis.
Learning resources
All students will be provided with the following learning resources that support different subject matters: textbooks, education packs, films, lesson plans, tablets, worksheets, and workbooks among others. Appendix A shows a layout of an early years classroom in the school (Insideinside, n.d.). Appendix B presents a layout of a classroom for subsequent educational phases (Klein Trading, 2017).
Happiness
The school will promote happiness in its students and staff by engaging them in regular extracurricular activities such as food festivals and marathons. The application of the Walls of Well-Being (WOWs) approach will also allow strengthening stakeholders’ positive emotions about the institution (Holder et al., 2017).
Teaching, learning and assessment
Strategies for teaching and learning
Students will be introduced to new content through adaptive teaching, which will help them to personalize their paths through the school’s curriculum (Bidarra & Rusman, 2017). Teachers of Dubai New Ethos School will emphasize on learning through argumentation; therefore, students will often be engaged in productive discussions. Other strategies for teaching and learning that will be utilized in the school include crossover learning, incidental learning, and context-based learning (Bidarra & Rusman, 2017).
Supporting the needs of individual students
The needs of students with SEND will be assessed in order to properly allocate school resources. Individual education plans and monitoring of outcomes will help to better control the children’s learning environment. The school will make sure that its teachers receive proper training that is consistent with KDHA requirements for students with SEND.
Assessment plan
Performance of the school’s students will be regularly evaluated at appropriate stages. Students with SEND will be subjected to SPED summative assessment. Table 4 presents the institution’s assessment plan.
Table 4. Assessment Plan.
Reporting to and consulting parents
The school’s vision for parental engagement presupposes the acknowledgement of their importance in both children’s life and the educational process. The communication will be conducted through daily contacts at the institution, regular meetings, induction meetings, progress meetings, and home visits. Regular meetings will be held three times a year. Furthermore, all caregivers will be provided with written progress reports. Parents will be reached via a variety of channels by the school’s staff.
Behavior and attendance
Student attitudes and behavior policy
The school will use Response to Intervention (RtI) model, which has been specifically designed to address behavioral and attendance issues in the school. The model can be described as “a systematic and hierarchical decision-making process to assign evidence-based strategies based on student need and in accordance with regular progress monitoring” (Kearney & Graczyk, 2014, p. 4).
Attendance
All students are expected to attend the school regularly. The institution’s progressive tardy policy presupposes conversations with teachers and parents. Progressive truancy policy includes several measures ranging from a conversation with a teacher to School Attendance Review Board meeting. Progressive behavior policy of Dubai New Ethos School has three stages during which the following measures can be taken: parent calls, referral to the school’s administrator, discipline contract, and suspension.
Student services
Counselling
All students will be offered free and confidential counselling services provided by a professional counselor.
Career guidance
The school’s staff will help its students to clarify their career goals.
Student safety
A safe educational environment will be maintained by private security guards.
Food
The school’s cafeteria will serve healthy meals.
Health
The school’s health center will provide safe and efficient primary health. It will also help to resolve crisis medical situations. In addition, an advanced practitioner nurse (APN) will engage in regular immunization monitoring.
Human resources
Governance structure
Dubai New Ethos School’s team of governors carries out numerous duties the most important of which are to oversee the strategic direction of the institution, hold the head teacher accountable, and ensure that resources of the school are effectively spent. The team also helps to form the school’s curriculum and participates in the appointment and dismissal of staff.
The full governing body of the educational institution helps to maintain a strong link with the local community. The body operates on a strategic level, whereas the head teacher along with the senior leadership of the school are responsible for internal organization and control of the institution (DES, 2015). Dubai New Ethos School’s investors influence the school’s vision and direction through the governing body.
The body also holds teachers accountable for their performance and controls resource allocation. The performance and standards committee is occupied by five governors who help the school to fulfil its legal requirements, ensure its policies are followed, and control self-evaluation procedures among other duties (DES, 2015). The school’s finance and resource committee is responsible for drafting a budget for a year and ensuring that the school follows the standards set in its financial documents.
School management
Table 5 shows lines or reporting in the school.
Table 5. Lines of Reporting in Dubai New Ethos School.
Teachers
Table 6 shows teaching posts in the school.
Table 6. Teaching posts in Dubai New Ethos School.
Administrative and other staff
Table 7 presents administrative and other staff of the school.
Table 7. Administrative and Other Staff of Dubai New Ethos School.
Recruiting and hiring
Staffing needs will be evaluated at the beginning of each school year. The school’s manager will “be held liable for the recruitment/selection of new teachers and ensuring they have recognized teaching qualifications/certificates and relevant teaching experience” (KHDA, n.d., p. 4). KHDA will be responsible for an approval of the school’s principal. Both the manager and teaching staff will be held accountable to the school, which possesses hiring authority.
Performance evaluation (appraisal)
Performance of all teachers will be evaluated during the following cycles: continuing contract teacher, beginning probation teacher, and experienced probationary teacher (NCTQ, n.d.). During the first cycle, professional growth plan will be monitored. In addition, continuing contractor teachers will be subjected to two classroom observations, one post-observation conference, and one summative planning conference twice a year (NCTQ, n.d.). Beginning probationary teacher will require similar evaluating procedures; however, they will be conducted once a year. Experienced probationary teachers will be subjected to the evaluation procedures every three years.
Professional development
All teachers will participate in professional development in accordance with the school’s TPD plan. The teachers will be required to obtain at least 70 hours of training over 3 academic years: 40 hours of accredited training programs, 20 hours of priority programs, and 10 hours of personal professional development.
Remuneration and allowances
Primary school teachers’ total pay will amount to AED 45, 424 (salary AED 45, 175 and bonus AED 249.88). Secondary school teachers’ total pay will be AED 34, 272 (salary AED 32, 149 and bonus AED 2,123). Medical and transportation expenditures will be reimbursed.
Financial plan
Financial policies and procedures
In addition to tuition fees, the school will have the following charges: application fee, registration fee, and transport fees. Students residing in Dubai will be charged AED 120 application fee. A registration fee for returning students will amount to 10 percent of the tuition fees. New students will be charged 30 percent of the tuition fees. Transportation costs will be covered separately.
Breakdown of fees
Table 8 shows a breakdown of fees for the 2018-2018 academic year.
Table 8. Fees for 2018-2018 Academic Year.
Start-up budget
An estimated start-up budget for Dubai New Ethos School is AED 3,200,000.
Operational budget
Table 9 presents operational budget for the school.
Table 9. Operational Budget for the School.
Financial surplus
Financial surpluses will be managed in accordance with the school’s financial plan, which presupposes a prudent interest cover ratio. If a school meets the ratio, which has been set at three times of its interest expense surpluses will be spent according to the premises development plan (PDP) (Northampton Shire, 2013).
The plan presupposes the following areas of investment: structural and building, classroom refurbishments, office space refurbishments, external space, health and safety, and security. The investment projects essential to school operational needs will be prioritized over other premises requiring investment.
References
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Appendixes
Appendix A
Appendix B
